31 Financial Wins for My 31st Birthday
Today is my 31st birthday. While it’s not exactly an important milestone to reach this age, I’ve reached a lot of financial goals over the years. Here are 31 of my favorite wins:
Winning the genetic lottery and being born into a fantastic home with two loving parents who supported (almost) everything I did growing up. It’s important that I acknowledge this privilege. My parents had their shares of financial ups and downs, no doubt about that, but they always encouraged me to explore opportunities to learn and grow.
Saving my allowance as a kid. Developing the habit of being a saver early set me up well for adulthood.
Getting summer jobs in high school. Working as a lifeguard not only gave me a great income, but it gave me meaning and purpose instead of lounging around all summer doing nothing.
Monetizing my skills at an early age. I’m eight years older than my youngest brother, so I developed babysitting skills at an early age. Throughout high school I was always increasing my savings account balance by working Saturday nights. I felt so rich making $10 an hour!
Graduating college in four years. This was immensely challenging, and did come at the expense of some summer school, but hell yeah I beat the odds and got an engineering degree in four years after starting behind in math. Take that, haters.
Lining up a full time job prior to graduation. I didn’t end up loving the job, but I had an offer signed before I walked across a stage.
Negotiating my salary at every new job. I’m no longer at my first place of employment, but each time I changed jobs I changed salaries and it was always for the best.
Negotiating relocation assistance for my first job. This was the only time I moved for a job, so it was the only time I needed it. I didn’t get a ton of money, but what I got helped.
Being friendly to strangers. It doesn’t cost you anything to be nice, but sometimes it rewards you. I struck up a conversation with the man sitting next to me at a breakfast bar, he ended up working at a furniture store and helped me secure financial win #10….
Buying a floor model mattress. Not for everyone, but a great way to save big. I think my mattress was like $1500 or more full retail and I paid under $400 for mine. It was clean and everything, just had been touched by untold numbers of people.
Creating a budget not too long after graduating college. I have my dad to thank for this. Having a budget saved me from outspending my income and set me up for achieving other financial goals.
Getting a roommate. This one’s not for everyone, which is fine. I got a two bedroom apartment by myself when I thought I could afford it, then when reality hit I got a roommate to move in so I could split bills. To this day I prefer the company of a roommate and the financial security they can provide.
Staying out of credit card debt. I opened my first credit card after graduating college, and I’m super proud to say that I have never rolled a balance. Credit card debt kills dreams.
Moving to a cheaper apartment when my lease was up. I found a cute spot in a cute neighborhood and a great roommate to live with. I loved that place and the cost of living there.
Taking full advantage of my brother’s flight benefits. More privilege here! My older brother works in the airline industry and for two years I was his plus one. I didn’t fly for free, but I flew for cheap. I left town 50% of the weekends I was on the benefits, mostly to visit friends and family. Being able to go home for things like birthdays and Mother’s/Father’s day was something that’s hard to put a price tag on.
Moving to Colorado when I had the opportunity to, and shipping most of my stuff through Amtrak. Did you know you can ship cargo on Amtrak? And that it’s cheaper than many other moving options? It took longer for my stuff to arrive in Denver than it did for me to, but it was an awesome option for me.
Buying furniture second hand. There are loads of things on Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist because folks are desperate to offload items prior to moving. With a little tenacity, you can find exactly what you’re looking for. I almost spent over $2000 on a table because I wanted something really specific but I kept tabs on Facebook Marketplace and ended up finding something that worked for only $100!
Developing charitable habits early. I have my parents to thank for this. I want to say that charitable giving is not only monetary, but you can also give your time. I personally have given various amounts of both time and money over the years to organizations that speak to me. Did NPR secure my donation by dangling Hamilton tickets in front of me? Yes, absolutely. Have I built great relationships through giving my time? Also absolutely. Giving charitably is a financial win for my community as much as it is for me.
Set boundaries for dates. I have a few rules that I impose on myself (will blog on this in the future!) and sharing these boundaries with potential suitors has helped filter out men who aren’t good matches.
Revisit my budget regularly. Over the years my income has changed, as has the cost of living. Keeping tabs on my spending habits has helped me achieve so much.
Using budget software. Mint was my best friend for a long time before it closed up shop at the end of 2023, now I use Monarch Money. Using budget software has really helped me stay on budget. I’ll check my budget before making plans and done things like suggest ideas for social gatherings that align with my budget, or ask to change venues from one place to another to align with my spending goals. I would go as far to say I gamified spending and challenge myself each month to spend less than I did last month.
Work as much overtime as possible. In 2017 I had the opportunity to earn about an extra 25% of my salary through overtime. This built my emergency fund…
Having an emergency fund. I found myself unemployed on two different occasions and I’m so proud of myself for not only making it through those challenging times, but doing so without taking out loans or going into credit card debt or asking family for help. I’m not going to say I thrived in unemployment, but I will say I crushed it. Also, never, ever, call it funemployment when speaking with someone between jobs unless they call it that first. There was nothing fun about being financially stressed about the possibility of running out of money.
Paying off my student debt. I did this in a somewhat dramatic fashion, I paid it down to about $10,000 and then cut one big fat check. I was paying over $600 a month towards my student loans, so paying them off in full freed up a ton of room in my budget to work towards other goals.
Celebrating my wins, big and small. Celebrating my financial wins helped me acknowledge how far I’ve come. I sponsored a community meal for paying off my loans, I did a steak dinner with my boyfriend when I hit $100,000 in my savings accounts- the celebrations have varied in size but what mattered is that I basked in each win.
I learned from my losses. There’s nothing better than learning something hard way, right? Maybe not. Some things I learned the hard way: if you don’t budget you do overspend, your attitude’s impact cascades into your wallet if you aren’t careful, there’s nothing fun about unemployment, all hobbies in Colorado are $2,000 to play (or more if you’re not careful), other people are always quicker to spend your money than you are… the list goes on.
Changing jobs when I got passed over for a promotion. There’s a saying that every two years, you should be “up or out” in order to maximize your income. I got my engineering license but I didn’t get promoted, so I jumped ship and got about a 25% raise instead of waiting around for another opening. Bonus: I love my current job! Not that I didn’t like my last one, but this one rocks.
Buying a condo when it was the right time for me. This is a partial truth- the right property opened up a few months before I wanted to buy, but I said screw it and put in an offer that was accepted. Not only did I buy a property I love but I began building equity at 27 by myself. I may one day sell the condo to help buy a home with a partner, using that equity towards a down payment.
Finding payment plans when they don’t cost money. Two specific examples here- my HOA’s special assessment (that’s when your association has expenses like a new roof that regular dues don’t cover and every property owner has to cough up extra cash to foot the bill) and my ski pass. Typically I don’t support the use of things like After Pay or Klarna, but ski passes are hundreds of dollars. It’s helpful for my budget to spread that across a few months instead of paying a lump sum up front. It’s important to note that when you finance a ski pass, they determine your payment plan to guarantee you’re paid in full before the season begins.
Learning to identify the difference between eating out at restaurants due to convenience and eating out for an occasion. This was a labor of love. I grew up with a perception that restaurant food was in some ways “better” than home cooked food because it was cooler or something. I still enjoy restaurants but I enjoy them so much more when I go to them with friends or family for a particular reason. Fast food serves a purpose, no doubt about it, but I don’t feel as good about spending money on something I could have done myself so I try to avoid it.
Stopping trying to fix my car “myself”. I put myself in quotes because me and my Ikea toolkit did very little stuff ourselves and we roped in knowledgeable friends and a boyfriend. In the end, I learned that my ability was not adequate and putting the onus on others was not worth the cost savings. For the record, I learned that changing your oil yourself saves no money in like 2019 but still attempted to repair my car “myself” until 2023. I’m a slow learner on this one, but I finally found a shop I trust and like and that made it easier to hand over my keys.
There are so many financial lessons I’ve learned over the years, these just scratch the surface.
Bonus: This is arguably the biggest financial win of all- I’ve learned to trust myself and my ability to get through any financial curveball life throws at me. I have an emergency fund, a sinking fund, retirement accounts, a condo providing a roof over my head and a can-do attitude. I know I got this. Happy birthday to me!
